Current Affairs Global - 31 July 2013

1. German engineering giant Siemens AG (SIE) named its Finance Chief Joe Kaeser as chief executive officer to take over from Peter Loescher. This move came after it repeatedly missed profit targets and charges mounted for failed power and train projects. Kaeser will start his new role on 1st August.

2. Euro zone unemployment rate fell for the first time in more than two years in June as the jobless total in the eurozone fell by 24,000 to 19.26 million, the first decrease in the jobless total since April 2011. However, the unemployment rate stayed at a record 12.1% in June. The job market data raises hope about the euro zone economy. The unemployment rate was 26.3% in Spain and 26.9% in Greece but it was significantly lower in Austria (4.6%) and Germany (5.4%).